Ode to Sunshine
by Genderfluid-Lafayette
Summary: With Will's birthday coming up, Nico wants to do something special for his boyfriend. So what does he do? He asks Will's rather famous older brother for help with writing him a sonnet. Two-shot. Historical figures involved.


**A/N: Hey, guys! I'm sorry I haven't been doing much lately... I've been having some trouble with my depression/anxiety and school...But! I'm doing a lot better now. Anyway, for any of you guys that care, I got a tumblr account! My url is unconditionallyinlovewithfiction and I would love if any of you guys followed me. I hope to post some of my fanart of characters and my OCs this summer when I have time. So, here is the first chapter of this two-shot (chapter 2 should be up within the next week or two depending on when I can update because finals are coming up within the next few weeks...so...yeah...) R &R and Enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: PJO and the historical figures are not mine...obviously...**

 _Ode to Sunshine_

 _Chapter 1_

Nico's pale fingers fiddled with the paper gripped tightly to his chest as he eyed the pale blue building in front of him. A part of him wanted to just turn around and forget the ridiculous idea had ever manifested in his brain. However, he didn't have enough time to fully contemplate this part of him before his feet carried him one step at a time up to the open door. A sort of heaviness seemed to press into his chest as the humming of contented voiced grew in volume. He stood in the doorway long enough for the chattering to come to a hault. He inhaled a sharp breath as several pairs of eyes rested on him.

He licked his dry lips, parting his lips to speak, but was swiftly interrupted by a soft call, "Nico."

His eyes drifted to the plush, violet loveseat in the corner. The man sitting in it was leaning back nonchalantly with a glass of red wine between his spindly fingers. His dark eyes shone through his slightly weathered face and a ghost of a smile curled under his moustache.

"Edgar," Nico breathed as he took steady steps towards his older brother.

Edgar sat up and set his glass on the small coffee table in front of him. He slid forward in the loveseat and undid the buttons on his charcoal waistcoat, then pushed up his sleeves up to just below his elbow. He gestured with slight grandeur to the smaller loveseat on his left. Nico, however, shook his head with a slight incline.

"I'm here to see William…" His voice suddenly caught in his throat.

The poet furrowed his brows. "What about?"

Nico shifted from foot to foot. "Well…-"

"You called for me," a voice chirped from behind him.

He spun around to be met by familiar sky blue eyes. Unlike many of the other shades around them, William's cheeks were intoxicated with brightness. Everything about him radiated light from his soft, caramel curls to his brown leather Oxfords. The bard's eyes searched back and forth between Nico and Edgar.

William nodded cordially towards Edgar. "Poe."

Edgar inclined his head. "Shakespeare."

Without taking his eyes off the two, William called back to the bartender, "Gin and Tonic and a Dr. Pepper!"

"Right away, sir," a gruff voice replied from behind the bar.

William gestured with his head. "Come, Nico."

Nico took one last glance at Edgar, the poet's features taut, before turning away to follow the bard. The hum of the bar had slowly crescendoed since Nico had stepped in. However, the only sound he paid attention to was the soft click of William's heels as he was led to the corner of the bar. Then a loud, shrieking laugh caught his attention. The laughter had erupted from bouncing blonde curls.

A quiet chuckle rumbled through William's chest. "Ernest and his coarse jokes-"

Nico scoffed lowly. "You're one to talk."

"-Scott, that woman has the laugh of a strangled canary!" William quipped.

"I beg to differ," the ginger spoke around his cigar. He gently draped an arm around the blonde's shoulders. "My Zelda's laugh is like the tinkling of celebratory glasses."

Zelda blushed brilliantly as she smacked his cheek with her ruby lips. The man on the other side of Scott just took a large swig of whisky.

Not wanting to take his eyes off the little show, Nico ended up bumping into William, who had abruptly stopped. He bounced off of him, taking a couple steps back. William looked over his shoulder with a slight curl to his lips and pulled out the two bar stools courteously.

"For you, good sirs," the bartender murmured as he placed their drinks on the dark wood.

William slid into his seat, taking a sip of his drink. Nico followed a little hesitantly, gently placing the paper and pen on the bar. He slowly slid the tall glass of Dr. Pepper to his chest, gripping it tightly. He chose to keep his eyes on his drink, watching the small carbonated bubbles break to the surface, and avoid the bard's questioning stare. The two sat in relative silence, taking slow sips of their drinks every so often.

At last, William heaved a heavy sigh and turned to face Nico. "Why do I have an odd feeling this is about a certain little brother of mine?"

Heat immediately reached Nico's cheeks as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his large sweater. Taking advantage of the son of Hades' bewilderment, William placed his boot against the back of Nico's seat and pushed with enough force to swivel Nico to face him. The bard leaned forward, searching for Nico's eyes through his hair with a cheeky grin. Weighed down by those crystal clear orbs, Nico finally relented and looked into William's face.

He gnawed on his bottom lip. "...Maybe…"

William threw his head back with bellowing laughter. Nico repressed the urge to glance around the room at all the curious stares, an uncomfortable heaviness igniting in his chest. William clasped his hands behind his head, gently swiveling back and forth in his seat, with a drunken flush to his cheeks. He cocked a brow suggestively.

"And just how may I be of service?" His voice was flighty, somewhere between joking and sincere.

Nico swallowed the lump in his throat. "Well...it's, uh, Will's birthday in a couple of, um, days...and...I wanted to, um...to…"

Instead of finishing, he shoved the line paper in William's direction. With a curious furrow of the brows, the bard glanced at the paper. Written at the very top (in very neat writing, William had to admit) were the words _Ode to Sunshine_. Along the margins, faintly drawn were the letters: _a_ , _b, a, b, c, d, c, d, e,f e, f, g, g_. William's eyebrows nearly collided with his hairline.

"You're trying to write Will a sonnet?" the bard gasped sitting up.

Panic flared in Nico's being as he practically jumped out of his seat, slamming his hands against William's mouth. "Shhhhhhhh!"

They sat there in their awkward position for several seconds. Nico's eyes glittered brightly, as if daring William to say something. The bard's eyes just smiled, irritating Nico for some odd reason. One by one, William peeled Nico's fingers off his face to reveal a Cheshire grin.

"Why didn't you come to me first?" a slightly slurred voice asked in disbelief. "I could have given you the best damn sonnet-"

A loud hiccup jolted through the poet.

"Edgar!" Nico squeaked as the poet made his way on unstable feet.

Like a sly fox, William slid out of his seat and brought a nonchalant arm around Edgar's shoulders, setting him on the plush couch only a few feet away from the bar. The poet grumbled beneath his 'stache, glossed-over gaze eyeing Nico. William kneeled next to him with a soft grip on Edgar's clasped hands. He searched around until he caught sight of a head of bushy white hair.

"Oi, Mark! Care to give me a hand…?" William called with a desperate decrescendo to his voice.

Mark let out a deep sigh through his nostrils as he stood, beckoning with his hand for his companion to follow. Nikola stood at least half a head taller than Mark, a sight that Nico couldn't help but smile at. Both men were dressed in elegant yet casual attire, but while Mark's snowy hair and moustache were splayed however they may, Nikola's dark locks were neatly combed away from his face.

"For the love of God, Edgar," Mark humphed, "pull yourself together."

"Bu-but-" Edgar's weak plea was disrupted by another hiccup.

"You owe us, William," Nikola murmured with his accent thickening the bard's name.

"I know, I know." William gripped Mark's shoulders firmly and kissed his cheek fervently. "Thank you, you marvelous man."

Twain's face flushed like blooming roses, his countenance becoming one of bashfulness. "Flattery won't lessen your debt. Now go about your business before I slap you."

William winked licentiously. "Oh, Mark. Is that a promise?"

Twain growled from somewhere in the back of his throat and shoved William away. "Get I said!"

William nearly tumbled over he was laughing so hard. He placed his fingers against his lips and blew a soft kiss in Mark's direction. As he sat back in his stool, he wiped a couple of stray tears from the corners of his eyes.

With a content sigh, he chuckled, "Samuel is such easy prey... Now! back to the matter at hand..."

The look he gave Nico was much sweeter and more sincere than previously. He grasped the pen between his fingers and wrote above the title, 'iambic pentameter=10 syllables'.

His voice softened as he asked, " What is it you want to tell Will?"

Nico sucked in a sharp breath. "I... I want to tell him..."

"Tell him you want the Sunny D!"

"Goddamnit, Ernest!" William shouted back to the intoxicated novelist. "I thought I told you to stay away from the internet!"

Nico's face burned vermillion as the other writers, artists, and historical figures quipped and bickered back and forth. He made note to ignore any lewd comments, or any comments really, being thrown about by Ernest, Alexander Hamilton, and other questionable parties. The sixteen-year old just slowly thumped his head repeatedly against the dark wood. As the two aforementioned sons of Poseidon howled with laughter, Nico stood and slammed his hands against the bar, quieting the bar of all other sound. He turned to face the others with a crimson face.

"That's it! I can do it myself!" He snatched up the paper and pen and stalked to the open door.

"Nico, wait!" Edgar attempted to sit up, but moved too quickly only to fall back down with a heavy pounding in his temples.

The son of Hades ignored all the pleas and slammed the door shut behind him. He paced back and forth on the porch before stomping down the stairs and sitting on the bottom step with his arms crossed. He barely paid attention to the muffled fighting going on behind him and concentrated on clearing his head. Sitting there for gods-know-how-long, he was pulled out of his thoughts by the quiet creak of the door. He shifted to glance over his shoulder to find Ernest and Alex standing just above him, their expressions remorseful but still proud, like the sea after a storm. Alex was the first to step forward and sit on the step above Nico. Despite his face being flushed, his eyes were sober.

Tucking a loose auburn lock behind his ear, he said, "I am really sorry if we embarrassed you."

Nico kept his eyes on the lower half of Alex's face, uncomfortable in looking into his enchanting eyes. They brewed and bubbled like the deepest ocean mingling every shade of blue around deep-set pupils. They graciously asked for amnesty without Hamilton ever needing to say anything else. Alex cleared his throat and wrinkled the faint freckles across his nose as he glanced back at Ernest.

"Are you forgetting something?" He annunciated each syllable carefully as if speaking to a child.

Ernest shuffled from foot to foot, keeping his eyes just shy of the son of Hades and his brother. His gaze was less than clear, the blue-brown irises fogging up with alcohol. However, he was still able to stumbled down the stairs with a sense of dignity. At last, he let gravity drop him upon the step above Alex and look into Nico's face.

"I am drunk," he stated matter-of-factly, "and I am sorry."

An impression of warmth spread through Nico's chest and he couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips into a smile. The novelists cheeks flushed as he placed his hand on the boy's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. The three slowly stood, Ernest nearly falling in his drunken stupor and needing Alex and Nico to help him up the stairs.

"Just do me one favor, kid,' Ernest said as they steadied him on the porch.

Nico quirked a brow curiously. "What's that?"

"Just be sure to put in a line in there about how Percy's not your type."

Alex laughed so hard he snorted and Nico practically choked on air, almost dropping Ernest. Alex and Ernest shared a peculiar look as Nico shook his head in disbelief. They stumbled forward through the doorway as Ernest let all his weight drop on their shoulders.

"Goddamnit, Ernest," Alexander groaned.

"I'm hearing that an awful lot today," Ernest mused with a tipsy gait.

Nico and Alex plopped him down on the seat next to Edgar. His head lolled back and forth as if in a trance with his eyes closed. Tesla loosely gripped Ernest's wrist and held it there for several seconds. After a moment, he gave a sufficient nod and let go.

"He won't be waking up anytime soon," the Serbian murmured as he leaned back, crossing his legs, with a newspaper in between his lanky fingers.

"Thank God," Mark sighed.

Nico watched the scene with an amused smirk, but was quickly pulled out of his thoughts by the soft grip of a hand on his shoulder. He craned his neck to look up into William's face. The bard was grinning apologetically from ear to ear. The grin disappeared as he feigned hurt as Nico swung and punched William's arm with enough force to knock him off his balance. His eyes glittered like a kicked puppy and Nico had to resist the urge to dig his boot into William's shin.

"Wipe that look off your face," the son of Hades griped as he escaped the bards grip and slithered into the bar stool. He took a sip of his Dr. Pepper and glanced back. "You gonna help me or not?"

William cocked an intrigued brow, placing his hands on his hips with his thumbs hooked in the belt loops of his jeans. "I suppose I might as well."

"I want to help too," Edgar wailed dejectedly from the couch. He made the effort to swing one of his legs off the edge, but blood suddenly rushed to his head and he chose to remain splayed like a drunken bastard. "Never mind…"

Nico set his elbow on the bar and rested his chin in his hand as he glanced back at his brother with a solemn gaze. He was half worried he was going to slide off the edge, but just then, Alex lifted Edgar's legs and placed them on top of his thighs as he sunk into the cushion. Poe grumbled under his breath, uneased by the sudden change in positions. Nico dropped his shoulders as he faced forward.

Without bothering to look at William leaning against the bar Nico quietly asked, "How do you tell someone you love them without being…" He made an agitated gesture with his hands, trying to find the right word. "Cheesy…?"

William's eyes paced back and forth in his skull as he thought. He sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly, allowing the air to inflate his cheeks as he released. "Nico, you're writing a sonnet… That is basically as cheesy as you can get."

Nico rubbed his face tiredly and groaned. "I know…"

"Okay, okay," William chirped. "Why don't you just...write adjectives to describe him and objects to compare him with? That is usually the easiest place to start…"

Nico sat there with deep concentration etched into his features as he stared down at the paper with the tip of the pen hovering just millimeters above. He continually placed the tip against the paper, but then pulled away after letting the ink soak through as if second guessing himself. Biting his lip, he scrawled a few words down, occasionally being hesitant and at one point crossing off a word so thickly that the ink bled through to the dark wood beneath. He tapped the pen against the paper a few times and sat back to admire his work.

William's eyes scanned over the awkwardly pleasant scribbles. Each letter was carved with the same amount of care, from the sweet phrase of _my sunshine_ to the snarky endearment of _drama queen_. William's shoulders shook with silent mirth.

"Good. Now put it all together."

Nico's eyebrows shot up and his eyes lit up with anguish.

"Don't look at me like that." He emphasized his point by jabbing his finger into the page. "I believe you can do it."

He glanced over his shoulder. "Now if you'll excuse me, you need time alone to think and I need to chat."

"Wait-"

"You know what to do," he called back with an airy voice as he walked away with a slight sway to his hips. "Just call for help."

"You don't need him," Edgar hiccupped weakly from under the pillow shielding his face. "I'll help you."

Nico smiled a little despite Edgar not being able to see him. "Thanks, brother."

"You're-" He paused as if waiting for something. "-welcome."

Nico stared at the page for a long while. He tucked the cap in between his teeth, lightly biting down and rolling it around with his lips. Hunching over the paper, he began to write with a loose hand. The cap bounced between his lips like a lulling tamber in time with the arcs of his wide letters. Occasionally he would pause to count the syllables on his fingers casually beating against the bar. Every now and then, various historical figures would make boorish jokes at his expense, but he paid no heed and resolved it to them being inebriated. As he lifted himself up from dotting the last _i_ , he felt the delicate touch of a half embrace.

"Hope you've been ignoring those ruffians," Zelda bantered with the tender batting of her eyelashes.

Nico gave a weary sigh. "Trust me. I most definitely have been."

A pretty shade of pink filled her plump cheeks as she smiled. "Good. At the moment, they're all drunken fools."

"They're in heaven. What'd you expect?" he quipped with a nonchalant shrug.

A smooth chortle shook her frame. "Nothing less, I suppose."

Her sight brushed against the paper. "This is awfully sweet of you."

The tenderness in her voice coaxed some pink into his cheeks. "Well...he's my boyfriend…"

The way the word _boyfriend_ rolled off his tongue left an almost sickly sweet taste in his mouth. However, he savored it with a sense of shy affection.

He took the piece of paper and nimbly folded it to fit in the inner pocket of his jacket. Resting his arm against the back of the seat, he watched William toss his head back in a billowing laugh as he joked and drank with da Vinci and Darwin. The son of Hades shook his head as he slid off his seat and headed for the door. He graciously smiled at Zelda and gave her a warm goodbye to which she returned. He leaned next to Edgar and took the pillow off his face slowly as to not startle him.

"Bye, Edgar," he said gingerly, careful not to be too loud.

Poe cracked one eye before opening the other. His dark eyes glittered kindly as he set his sights on Nico and the corners of his lips curled a little. He reached out and patted Nico on the head like he was praising a small child and the little brother feigned annoyance.

Edgar snickered as he used more force and pushed him playfully. "Now off with you."

Nico pulled away from his grip with a grin plastered across his face and stood. "I'll see you later."

Before walking out the door, he glanced back at William. The bard seemed to feel eyes on him as his attention was grabbed. A grin split his face as he watched Nico and inclined his head with two fingers to his brow in salute. With a wide gesture he gave his salute and bowed grandly. Nico rolled his eyes as he stepped through the doorway.


End file.
